Equity & Diversity Survey

The Equity & Diversity Survey ran as a two-year pilot project for applicants for the 2023 and 2024 academic calendar years. Upon completion of the pilot project, we are analyzing the data and discussing how the survey will be used in the future, if changes are required, and how the implementation of this survey can better be supported for ease of use by applicants and UVic Law.

The purpose of this survey

At UVic Law, we care deeply about equity, diversity and inclusivity in our student body, legal education and the legal profession. Diversity requires acceptance and respect. We understand that each individual is unique and we value your individual differences.

UVic Law’s Equity Policy recognizes there are systemic barriers to accessing legal education. We want the diversity of our student body to better represent the diversity of the community.

Filling out this survey will help us:

  • Assess the diversity of our applicant pool and first-year class;
  • Improve our admission practices and policies;
  • Develop better recruitment strategies;
  • Give you an insight into the UVic Law student experience; and
  • Find out what supports and resources our students need.

Link to survey: https://lawdiversitysurvey.uvic.ca/

*Please note you must wait at least 24 hours after creating your Netlink ID to complete the survey.

We respect your privacy

How we keep your information confidential:

  • UVic Institutional Planning & Analysis will combine the data so that individual responses are not identifiable. 
  • UVic Law will not use your responses for decision-making about your application. 
  • Survey information will not be part of your admission file and we will not save it with your student file. 
  • All information will be stored on a secure server at UVic. 
  • UVic Law staff will not be able to access your responses.  
  • This survey complies with the University’s Protection of Privacy Policy and British Columbia’s Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.
  • You are not required to provide your personal information.  You can select "Prefer not to answer" if you do not want to answer a question.

What happens to the data?

  • An analyst from UVic Institutional Planning & Analysis will create an equity and diversity report based on the survey data. 
  • The report will go to the Dean, the Associate Deans, UVic Law Admissions Office, the Admissions Committee and Faculty Council.
  • Like other law schools in Canada, we will make a first-year class profile public each year. 
  • UVic Institutional Planning & Analysis will destroy individual responses within three months after finalizing the report. 

If you have any questions, please contact the UVic Law Admissions Office by email at lclerk2@uvic.ca.

Overview of the Survey

The survey has four sections:

  • Section 1 collects some basic demographic information (10 questions).
  • Section 2 focuses on the underrepresented groups identified in UVic Law’s Equity Policy (6 questions).
  • Section 3 covers socio-economic information (6 questions).
  • Section 4 provides you an opportunity to provide comments on the survey and admissions process (open text box).

The survey should take you no longer than 5 minutes to complete.

Section 1: Why collect demographic information?

Prospective students often ask "Will there be other students like me in the class?" This section will collect some basic demographic information. With this data, we will learn who we are admitting into the first-year class. We will share this so you have insight into the class demographics. And, it will help us do better at providing the right supports and resources for our student body. 

Dimensions of discrimination

This section covers six dimensions of discrimination prohibited by the British Columbia Human Rights Code:

  1. Age 
  2. Ancestry
  3. Place of origin
  4. Marital status
  5. Family status, and 
  6. Religion.

These demographic dimensions have been and continue to be the basis for discrimination and disadvantageous treatment in Canadian society.

Section 2: Under-represented groups

UVic Law’s Equity Policy recognizes five groups who are under-represented in Canadian law schools and in the law profession:

  1. Women
  2. Indigenous Persons
  3. Racialized Minorities
  4. Persons with Disabilities, and
  5. Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Two-Spirit, Transgender and Queer (GLBTTQ Persons). 

Equity Policy commitments

Our Equity Policy commits us to increasing diversity in the student body. To do this we must remove barriers that impede access for these groups to UVic Law. Your answers will help us measure how we are doing with our Equity Policy commitments. 

Section 3: Recognizing socio-economic barriers

In addition to the recognized groups in UVic Law’s Equity Policy, students from low-income families encounter barriers trying to access legal education. There is no one measure of socio-economic status. The questions address the issue from different angles. This way, we can address a variety of concerns.

Section 4: Feedback

This survey is a pilot project and we are interested in your feedback! Please tell us about your experience by completing this 30 second survey. Your feedback helps us to create a better experience for future applicants to UVic Law.

Link to survey: https://lawdiversitysurvey.uvic.ca/